Romanus Ugwu, in Owerri
Action Alliance (AA) governorship candidate, Uche Nwosu, has expressed confidence in winning the Imo State governorship election, insisting that regardless of whatever post-election information being peddled by other candidates of other political parties, he was confident of victory.
Fielding questions from newsmen, Nwosu, said that the flipside of the successful poll was the death of an armed political thug shot by security agents for attempting to snatching ballot box, lamenting that no poll is worth anybody’s blood.
Asked the low point of the election, Nwosu said: “It is the death of a young man at Umudi, shot for attempting to snatch a ballot box.
“From the report I got, police caught two of them, saw a pistol while searching them and while running to evade arrest, one of them was shot. It is really a pity that it happened because no election is worth anybody’s blood.”
He also dismissed as mere speculation, the report that some politicians directed that collation of results should not be done at the ward but Local Government Area (LGA), stressing: “If there is a report like that, I can tell you that it is not true. It is just mere rumour that holds no water.
“However, having counted the results, my advice to the electorate is that they should follow the announced results from the polling units to the ward, LGA, and state collation centres. This is what we call policing of the result sheets,” he noted.
On the heavy presence of security agents across the state during the governorship election, he said: “Even as there is heavy presence of security agents, the electorate still came out massively. Don’t forget that this election was so tensed with rumours of uncertainty. The good thing is that at the end of the voting and announcement of the results, nothing untoward happened.
“People came out massively regardless of the security presence. They did not also intimidate anybody, but were just vigilant in ensuring that the voting progressed very well. At best, we can conveniently call them observers,” he insisted.
While expressing confident of victory, Nwosu said: “I don’t know the information available to you from whatever source, victory is in my favour from the reports at my disposal and I will win by the grace of God.”
He equally commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for conducting a peaceful election, confirming that in addition to the early arrival of electoral materials, the commission ensured that the Smart Card Readers functioned very well in most voting areas.
Also showering encomiums on the commission, elder statesman and former People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Cosmas Madugba, said that he would not have asked more from INEC, confirming that electoral materials arrived on time, Smart Card Readers worked very well, even as he lamented that many people could not be accredited before the stipulated voting period due to the numerical strength of the electorate.
Meanwhile, two political thugs cheated death by the whiskers at Eziama ward, Nkwere LGA, when the electorate descended on them, hauling all manners of weapon at them after suspecting them to be on a mission to disrupt voting process and snatch a ballot box.
For the intervention of some elders, the two suspected thugs almost paid with their lives, as their cries for help did not prevent the mob from ensuring that blood flowed from every part of their bodies, before the elders prevailed on the rampaging youths, warning that their blood would be on their hands if they killed them.
At Registration Area Centre (RAC), Central School, Anara, it was a rowdy scene at the early hours on Saturday as agents and electoral staff complained endlessly against the failure of the electoral officer to supply stamps that would authenticate the results from the polling units.
It took the intervention of a senior police officer, Dan Nwosu, who put a telephone call to the electoral officer at 9.05am to calm frayed nerves.
Expressing anger against the agitated party agents and other concerned persons, the police officer thundered: “It is not my responsibility to know why the INEC officer did not bring the stamp; you have also heard my telephone conversation with him; you have to be patient. I don’t want anybody to cause trouble here. We are ready for you especially anybody who misbehaves during this election. You have to behave yourselves or face the consequences.”